Staying healthy in pregnancy

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Food hygiene

Weight gain in pregnancy

Weight gain in pregnancy varies greatly. Most pregnant women gain between 10kg and 12.5kg (22lb to 26lb), putting on most of the weight after week 20.

Much of the extra weight is due to your baby growing, but your body will also be storing fat, ready to make breast milk after your baby is born.

If you are overweight or obese there is no UK based evidence on how much weight you should gain during pregnancy. American research has suggested that limiting your weight gain to below 10kg may be beneficial to mum and baby.

Gaining too much weight

Putting on too much weight can affect your health and increase your blood pressure. It is not recommended to go on a restricted diet, however eating healthily and stating active is beneficial for your baby.

Gaining too much weight can increase your risk of complications. These include:

gestational diabetes: too much glucose (sugar) in your blood during pregnancy can cause gestational diabetes, which increases your risk of having a large baby

pre-eclampsia: a rise in blood pressure can be the first sign of pre-eclampsia; although most cases are mild and cause no trouble, pre-eclampsia can be serious

Staying active

Staying active is important while you’re pregnant, as it will prepare your body for labour and birth.

By exercising during pregnancy you are less likely to develop gestational diabetes, pre eclampsia or have excessive weight gain. Exercise during pregnancy is also very good for your mood stability.

Keep up your normal daily activity or exercise (unless you’ve been advised by your midwife or GP not to exercise).

Alcohol and pregnancy

Smoking and pregnancy

We know that it can be difficult to stop smoking. But we also know that you want to give your baby the best possible start in life.

The risks of smoking during pregnancy are serious, from premature delivery to increased risk of miscarriage, stillbirth or sudden infant death. Quitting smoking is one of the best things you and your partner can do to help your baby develop healthily during pregnancy and beyond. For more help and advice visit the NHS Smoke Free website.

When you smoke you breathe in more than 4,000 chemicals from the cigarette. The smoke goes from your lungs into your bloodstream. That blood flows to your placenta and umbilical cord,right into your baby's tiny body. This causes your baby to struggle for oxygen.

One of the chemicals found in cigarettes is carbon monoxide, a dangerous chemical that gets into your bloodstream. This restricts the supply of oxygen that's essential for your baby's healthy growth and development.

Your baby's tiny body is completely dependent on yours, so if you smoke throughout your pregnancy, your baby will go through nicotine withdrawal once it is born. This can make your baby stressed and irritable and it may be difficult to stop them crying.

Smoking while you are pregnant also increases the risk of your baby dying from cot death by at least 25%.

Many people are choosing to use e-cigarettes to help them stop smoking. While these products are not completely risk free and the vapour may contains some toxins, these are at far lower levels than in cigarette smoke, so using an e-cigarette is a great deal safer than smoking

However, little is known about any potential risks of e-cigarette vapour to your baby and mums-to-be are therefore recommended to use one of the licensed stop smoking medications such as nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) to help reduce any withdrawal symptoms when quitting smoking.

If you do want to use an e-cigarette – maybe because you’ve tried other methods without success – there is lots of advice and support available from your local Stop Smoking Service. The most important thing for you and your baby is to stop smoking.

Mental health and pregnancy

Common health problems in pregnancy

Sexual health

Existing Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) and pregnancy

If you are pregnant and suspect you have a sexual transmitted infection tell your GP, midwife or self refer to your local sexual health clinic. Depending on what kind of infection you have, you are still likely to have a healthy pregnancy and a healthy child.

For infections that can't be cured completely, such as herpes and HIV, steps can be taken to lessen the chances of the virus passing from mother to child.

Catching an STI during pregnancy

Catching an STI during pregnancy can cause problems for both mother and child. The infection may be passed to the child during pregnancy, labour, or during childhood.

If you are pregnant and suspect you may have caught an STI, tell your midwife or doctor immediately.

Some STIs are symptomless and some may give you signs. Some of these symptoms are also common changes that happen in pregnancy and may not be a sign of an STI. Tell your midwife if you are experiencing any of the following

pain when you pass urine (pee)

itching, burning or tingling around the genitals

blisters, sores, spots or lumps around the genitals or anus

black powder or tiny white dots in your underwear – this could be droppings or eggs from pubic lice

Domestic violence

Domestic abuse is very common; approximately 1.3 million women suffer abuse in some form every year. It has a wide range of effects both physical and mental which if not addressed can have long term health consequences. Pregnancy can trigger an increase in the frequency and intensity of abuse and many women will experience it for the first time during their pregnancy.

We know that people suffering abuse often want help but feel they cannot speak out; this is why all health care staff have been trained to ask you about your relationship and if you feel safe at home. Midwives, GP’s and Health visitors will support you and your family offering advice and referral to a specialist worker if this is needed. They will not make decisions for you but offer guidance and information so that you can move forward together and keep yourself safe.

Please speak to your midwife if you need any support or call one of the help line numbers below.

National domestic abuse helpline 24 hours (free) 0808 2000 247

PIPPA Southampton helpline 09.30-16.30 Mon-Fri 02380 917917

Pippa stands for ‘prevention, intervention and public protection alliance’. It is an alliance group of specialist sexual and domestic services in Southampton, working to end domestic and sexual violence and abuse.